Why does the Marine Hymn contains the phrase =
"… to the shores of Tripoli"? Most Americans are =
unaware of the fact that over two hundred years ago, the United States =
had declared war on Islam and Thomas Jefferson led the charge! =
At the height of the 18th century, Muslim pirates =
(sometimes called "Barbary Pirates") were the terror of the =
Mediterranean and a large area of the North Atlantic. They attacked =
every ship in sight and held the crews for exorbitant ransoms. Those =
taken hostage were subjected to barbaric treatment and wrote =
heart-breaking letters home, begging their government and family members =
to pay whatever their Islamic captors demanded. These =
extortionists of the high seas represented the North African Islamic =
nations of Tripoli, Tunis, Morocco, and Algiers – collectively referred =
to as the Barbary Coast – and presented a dangerous and unprovoked =
threat to the new American Republic ..
Before =
the Revolutionary War, U.S. merchant ships had been under the protection =
of Great Britain. When the U.S. declared its independence and entered =
into war, the ships of the United States were protected by France. =
However, once the war was won, America had to protect its own =
fleets. Thus, the birth of the U.S. Navy. Beginning in 1784, 17 =
years before he would become president, Thomas Jefferson became =
America’s Minister to France. That same year, the U.S. Congress sought =
to appease its Muslim adversaries by following in the footsteps of =
European nations who paid bribes to the Barbary States rather than =
engaging them in war.
In =
July of 1785, Algerian pirates captured American ships, and the leader =
of Algiers demanded an unheard-of ransom of $60,000. It was a plain and =
simple case of extortion, and Thomas Jefferson was vehemently opposed to =
any further payments. Instead, he proposed to Congress the formation of =
a coalition of allied nations who together could force the Islamic =
states into peace. A disinterested Congress decided to pay the ransom. =
In 1786, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams met with =
Tripoli’s ambassador to Great Britain to ask by what right his nation =
attacked American ships and enslaved American citizens, and why Muslims =
held so much hostility towards America, a nation with which they had no =
previous contacts.
The =
two future presidents reported that Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman =
Adja had answered that Islam "was founded on the Laws of their =
Prophet, that it was written in their Quran that all nations who would =
not acknowledge their authority were sinners, that it was their right =
and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make =
slaves of all they could take as prisoners, and that every Muslim who =
should be slain in battle was sure to go to Paradise." =
Despite this stunning admission of premeditated =
violence on non-Muslim nations, as well as the objections of many =
notable American leaders, including George Washington, who warned that =
caving-in was both wrong and would only further embolden the enemy, for =
the following fifteen years the American government paid the Muslims =
millions of dollars for the safe passage of American ships or the return =
of American hostages. The payments in ransom and tribute amounted to =
over 20 percent of the United States government annual revenues in 1800. =
Jefferson was disgusted. Shortly after his being =
sworn in as the third President of the United States in 1801, the Pasha =
of Tripoli sent him a note demanding the immediate payment of $225,000 =
plus $25,000 a year for every year forthcoming. Jefferson let the =
Pasha know, in no uncertain terms, what he could do with his demand. The =
Pasha responded by cutting down the flagpole at the American consulate =
and declared war on the United States. Tunis, Morocco, and Algiers =
immediately followed suit. Jefferson, until now, had been against =
America raising a naval force for anything beyond coastal defense, but, =
having watched his nation be cowed by Islamic thuggery for long enough, =
decided that it was finally time to meet force with force. =
He dispatched a squadron of frigates to the =
Mediterranean and taught the Muslim nations of the Barbary Coast a =
lesson he hoped they would never forget. Congress authorized Jefferson =
to empower U.S. ships to seize all vessels and goods of the Pasha of =
Tripoli and to "cause to be done all other acts of precaution or =
hostility as the state of war would justify".
When =
Algiers and Tunis, who were both accustomed to American cowardice and =
acquiescence, saw the newly independent United States had both the will =
and the right to strike back, they quickly abandoned their allegiance to =
Tripoli. The war with Tripoli lasted for four more years and raged up =
again in 1815. The bravery of the U.S. Marine Corps in these wars led to =
the line "…to the shores of Tripoli", and they would forever =
be known as "leathernecks" for the leather collars of their =
uniforms, designed to prevent their heads from being cut off by the =
Muslim scimitars when boarding enemy ships.
When =
Thomas Jefferson saw there was no negotiating with Muslims, he formed =
what is the now the Marines (sea going soldiers). These Marines were =
attached to U. S. Merchant vessels. When the Muslims attacked U.S. =
merchant vessels, they were repulsed by armed soldiers. The =
Marines followed the Muslims back to their villages and killed every =
man, woman, and child in the village. It didn’t take long for the =
Muslims to leave U.S. merchant vessels alone. English and French =
merchant vessels started running up our flag when entering the =
Mediterranean to secure safe travel.
Islam, =
and what its Barbary followers justified doing in the name of their =
prophet and their god, disturbed Jefferson quite deeply. America had a =
tradition of religious tolerance. In fact Jefferson, himself, had =
co-authored the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, but =
fundamentalist Islam was like no other religion the world had ever seen. =
A religion based on supremacy, whose holy book not only condoned but =
mandated violence against unbelievers, was unacceptable to him. His =
greatest fear was that someday this brand of Islam would return and pose =
an even greater threat to the United States.
This =
should concern every American. That Muslims have brought about =
women-only classes and swimming times at taxpayer-funded universities =
and public pools; that Christians, Jews, and Hindus have been banned =
from serving on juries where Muslim defendants are being judged; Piggy =
banks and Porky Pig tissue dispensers have been banned from workplaces =
because they offend Islamist sensibilities; ice cream has been =
discontinued at certain Burger King locations because the picture on the =
wrapper looks similar to the Arabic script for Allah; public schools are =
pulling pork from their menus. But in turn several American companies =
have placed the Muslim symbol on their products in the name of Allah. =
It’s death by a thousand cuts, or inch-by-inch as =
some refer to it, and most Americans have no idea that this battle is =
being waged every day across America. By not fighting back, by allowing =
groups to obfuscate what is really happening, and not insisting that the =
Islamists adapt to our own culture, the United States is cutting its own =
throat with a politically correct knife, and helping to further the =
Islamists agenda. Sadly, it appears that today America’s leaders would =
rather be politically correct than victorious!
~~
Dr Bob Griffin =
[email protected] www.grif.net =
"Jesus Knows Me, This I =
Love!"